(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
Our recent experiments with Sudoku generation included many ideas for faster game experiences like this Mini-Sudoku with 4 regions to go. We’re still testing how to automatically package sets of these puzzles together for the mass market.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: Another Atypical Solve?

Author/Opus: This is the 598th puzzle from Thomas Snyder.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 2 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:30, Master = 2:00, Expert = 4:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) series.)
While the name may not be familiar, this Anti-Renban has a simple rule that along a line you have a range of numbers with no consecutive pairs. This puzzle should flow well if you can understand the rule.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: Circle Gets the Square

Author/Opus: This is the 20th puzzle from Philip Newman, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.

Rules: Standard Sudoku rules (insert a number from 1 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region). All numbers along the indicated lines must be at least 2 apart from every other number on the line.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 7:00; One party hat (🥳): 13:00. All other solvers earn a 🦕: Harried Helopus.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 3:12, with SudokuPad replay file shared as a download for now (requires loading via settings menu with improvements expected before people should use this regularly).

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for more Genuinely Approachable Sudoku puzzles on this site. Follow this link for other less common variations of Sudoku.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
Our recent experiments with Sudoku generation included many ideas for faster game experiences like this Mini-Sudoku with 4 regions to go. We’re still testing how to automatically package sets of these puzzles together for the mass market.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: 100%, Capital H Handmade?

Author/Opus: This is the 597th puzzle from Thomas Snyder.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 1.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:00, Master = 1:30, Expert = 3:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
Computers construct Sudoku by subtracting randomly from a known solution. Humans construct by adding givens, like in a house of cards, and hoping the last few don’t topple the foundation. What if you overbuilt a solid foundation and then let a computer subtract randomly from a good puzzle to get a Sudoku?

PDF or an even more improved 24-given Major Newspaper Edition!*

or solve online (using SudokuPad), or the special Major Newspaper Edition*

Author/Opus: These are the 13th and 14th puzzles from “Dr. Sudoku”, our AI-powered puzzle engine pushing the limits of sudoku intelligence.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty 1 (Posted version; highlight to view): 4 stars

Time Standards 1 (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 5:15, Master = 9:30, Expert = 19:00

Difficulty 2 (Major Newspaper version; highlight to view): 4 stars

Time Standards 2 (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 5:15, Master = 9:30, Expert = 19:00

Solution: PDF and PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

Special author’s note: This puzzle was highly inspired by a design from Thomas Snyder even if so refactored, reworked, or otherwise changed he may not know which thing. But he probably does. You will always inspire our creations.

*Special editorial note: We had significant internal debate about whether to publish this creative Dr. Sudoku puzzle with the controversial or potentially political subtitle “Major Newspaper Edition”, as it is not clear there are (m)any major newspapers anymore, certainly compared to propaganda machines, AI / attention-grabbing platforms, and companies pivoting to all the games fit to print instead of journalism.

This cute Clone Sudoku by clover! gets not one, not two, but four + ratings from us for extending Classic Sudoku solving in a less common way.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Author/Opus: This is the 38th puzzle from Clover, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.

Rules: Standard Sudoku rules (insert a number from 1 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region). Additionally, each shaded, connected shape (“clone”) in the grid must include the same numbers in the same positions with no rotations or reflections. Numbers may repeat within a clone.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 6:00; One party hat (🥳): 11:00. All other solvers earn a 🦕: experimental Erketu.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 2:36, with SudokuPad replay file shared as a download for now (requires loading via settings menu with improvements expected before people should use this regularly).

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for other less common variations of Sudoku.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
At times it may seem important to hide your intelligence, to hide the magic behind your tricks with smoke and mirrors. But when testing your Sudoku intelligence, whether as a solver or a setter, there may be places where there is nothing that you can hide.

PDF or alternate “Nothing to Hide” (the Snyder Cut)*

or solve online as shown here (using SudokuPad), or the Snyder Cut*

Author/Opus: This is the 596th puzzle from Thomas Snyder.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 4 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 5:15, Master = 9:30, Expert = 19:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

Special author’s note: This puzzle was highly inspired by a design from Serkan Yürekli even if so refactored, reworked, or otherwise changed he may not know which thing. You will always be more than a Puzzle Robot to us.

*Special editorial note: We had significant internal debate about whether to publish this sudoku as the author originally intended for the A Story of Self-Setting Sudoku series, or as appropriate as a proper Sudoku. We are doing both but want to make clear the author’s preferred starting point is the alternate link that disobeys design rules with extra filler for some reason.

(This post is part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) series.)
Today’s GAS puzzle by Philip Newman is an incredible play on Little Killer clues and we hope brings you three times as much joy as usual.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Theme: Triforce

Author/Opus: This is the 19th puzzle from Philip Newman, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.

Rules: Standard Sudoku rules (insert a number from 1 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region). Numbers along indicated diagonals must sum to the given total outside the grid.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 8:30; One party hat (🥳): 17:00. All other solvers earn a 🦕: Asthmatic Astigmasaura.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 4:21, with SudokuPad replay file shared as a download for now (requires loading via settings menu with improvements expected before people should use this regularly).

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for more Genuinely Approachable Sudoku puzzles on this site. Follow this link for other less common variations of Sudoku.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
To learn more about how an AI solves and thinks about puzzles, we cover the majority of the grid and limit it to just a subset of the boxes. It is very curious how having 32 empty cells instead of 32 givens can lead to abrupt behavior changes when altering the attention mask.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Author/Opus: This is the 595th puzzle from Thomas Snyder.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 4 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 2:45, Master = 8:30, Expert = 17:00

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

(This post is part of: “A Story of Self-setting Sudoku”.)
To learn more about how an AI solves and thinks about puzzles, we cover the majority of the grid and limit it to just a subset of the boxes. It is very curious how having 32 empty cells instead of 32 givens can lead to abrupt behavior changes when altering the attention mask.

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Author/Opus: This is the 594th puzzle from Thomas Snyder.

Rules: Insert a number from 1 to 9 into each white cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region.

Difficulty (highlight to view): 2.5 stars

Time Standards (highlight to view): Grandmaster = 1:45, Master = 3:45, Expert = 7:30

Solution: PDF

Note: Follow this link for classic Sudoku. If you are new to this puzzle type, here are our easiest Sudoku to get started on. More classic Sudoku puzzles can be found in The Art of Sudoku, The Art of Sudoku 2 and in our beginner-friendly collection Intro to GMPuzzles by Serkan Yürekli.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Twelve Months of Sudoku? post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.

With only the given plus shape in the center, can you add more numbers from the Quadruples clues to complete this Sudoku by clover!?

PDF

or solve online (using SudokuPad)

Author/Opus: This is the 37th puzzle from Clover, part of the Genuinely Approachable Sudoku (GAS) team.

Rules: Standard Sudoku rules (insert a number from 1 to 9 into each cell so that no number repeats in any row, column, or bold region). Numbers in white circles must appear in at least one of the four surrounding cells.

GAS Time Standards (highlight to view): Two party hats (🎩🥳): 8:00; One party hat (🥳): 15:00. All other solvers earn a 🦕: touchy Torosaurus.

Thomas Hits the GAS (highlight to view): 4:13, with SudokuPad replay file shared as a download for now (requires loading via settings menu with improvements expected before people should use this regularly).

Solution: PDF and solving video with explanation from GAS team.

Note: Follow this link for other less common variations of Sudoku.

Note 2: Comments on the blog are great! For a more interactive discussion, please also consider using our Daily GAS discussion post on the GMPuzzles Discord. Not a member of the Discord? Click this link for basic access.